US 68 begins at US 62 near Padacuah and crosses through Land Between the Lakes. It continues across the southern part of the state, passing through Hopkinsville and Bowling Green, before turning to the northeast at Edmonton. It then passes through Campbellsville, Lexington, and Paris before exiting into Ohio across the Ohio River near Maysville. The yellow highlight on the map above shows the general route of US 68 in Kentucky.

A contractor for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet has expanded the work zone footprint for the New Eggners Ferry Bridge over Kentucky Lake at Aurora and has shifted traffic in the 4-lane section at each end of the project area.

Today, the length of the work zone was extended by about 1/2 mile at each end with completion of median crossovers. Traffic was shifted to the new configuration aboutNoon, today.

HOPKINSVILLE, Ky. (Oct. 2, 2012) – Gov. Steve Beshear, joined by area legislators and state and local officials, today unveiled new highway signs announcing a higher speed limit of 65 mph on strategically located U.S. 68/KY 80 between Cadiz and Bowling Green.

The Eggners Ferry Bridge was reopened as planned by Memorial Day this year. This information is posted here for historical purposes. From Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Department of Highways District 1 (May 18, 2012):

Repairs on track for Eggners Ferry Bridge to reopen by Memorial Day weekendConcrete pour on deck section tentatively scheduled for Sunday

AURORA, Ky.– Repairs to the U.S. 68/KY 80 Eggners Ferry Bridge are on track for reopening of the damaged bridge in time for the Memorial Day weekend.

Crews from Hall Contracting of Kentucky Inc. lifted a new truss span into place on Tuesday, May 15. Today, they are placing the last of the reinforcing steel and forms required for pouring a concrete deck on the new span this weekend. They plan complete final preparations on Saturday morning to be prepared to pour concrete starting on Sunday morning. The concrete pour is expected to take about 5 to 6 hours to complete.

FRANKFORT, Ky. (May 24, 2012) – Gov. Steve Beshear hailed tomorrow’s planned reopening of the U.S. 68/KY 80 Eggners Ferry Bridge – a full 2 ½ days ahead of schedule. Hall Contracting of Kentucky Inc. completed the emergency repairs on the bridge earlier than required, and the bridge is expected to reopen to traffic at 1 p.m. CDT Friday.

The Eggners Ferry Bridge, which carries U.S. 68/KY 80 across Kentucky Lake, has been closed since it was struck by a cargo ship, the Delta Mariner, on the night of Jan. 26. A 322-foot-long span of the 80-year-old bridge was torn away.

On February 4, 2012, officials allowed public access to the eastern approach to the Eggner's Ferry Bridge to view the collapsed span. The bridge carried US 68 and KY 80 over Kentucky Lake (the Tennessee River) between Marshall and Trigg counties. A mainspan of the bridge collapsed after being struck by the cargo vessel MV Delta Mariner on January 26, 2012.

The Associated Press is reporting that the Eggner Ferry Bridge which carries US 68 and KY 80 over Kentucky Lake has partially collapsed after being struck by river traffic. It appears that one of the four main truss sections of the bridge has completely collapsed. There were no injuries reported.

From the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Department of Highways District 3 (Aug. 9, 2010):

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet will hold a public meeting from 4 pm until 6 pm on Tuesday, August 24 at the Metcalfe County High School concerning the construction of a new interchange on the Louis B. Nunn/Cumberland Parkway at US 68, north of Edmonton.

From the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Department of Highways District 4:

ELIZABETHTOWN, Ky. (May 24, 2010) — A section of Craintown Road near U.S. 68 in Marion County, near the Boyle County line, will be closed throughout the summer as crews construct two concrete bridges and realign the U.S. 68 approach.

The roadway will be closed from June 1 to Sept. 15. Motorists can detour via Crain School Road and Short Line Road, in Boyle County. The detour route is signed.

Together the bridge replacements will cost about $388,000. The work is part of a $6.7 million, 2.6-mile reconstruction of U.S. 68 from KY 243, in Marion County, to about a half-mile west of KY 34, in Boyle County.

Contracts for the first phase of a project to extend the Edward T. Breathitt Pennyrile Parkway to I-24 are scheduled to be let in November. Construction may begin as early as April. The first phase will extend the parkway to the US 68 By-pass around Hopkinsville.

A route has been chosen for the proposed southern bypass of Russellville. The chosen route was the longest of three alternatives considered and will connect at the existing northern bypass at both ends. Right-of-way purchase for the eastern leg of the bypass (between US 68/KY 80 and KY 100) is expected to begin this year.

A project to extend Seventh Street has begun in Bowling Green. The project will tie together US 68/KY 80, KY 185, KY 234, and KY 880 and will include the construction of a new underpass under the CSX railroad.

The reporter for the Daily News refers the project as part of a four lane loop; however, KY 880 is far from a four lane loop. The road is two lanes from KY 234 to US 231 east of downtown and from US 68/KY 80 to KY 1435 southwest of downtown.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet has recommended that the proposed “Heartland Parkway” between Columbia and Springfield be constructed by widening KY 55, US 68, and KY 555 to four lanes along their existing route.

Construction should begin this summer to realign 14th Street in Bowling Green near Western Kentucky University. After the project is complete Center Street will end at 14th Street. The realignment is intended to improve traffic flow around WKU’s campus.

Plans for a new Southwest Corridor between Russellville Road (US 68/KY 80) and Nashville Road (US 31W) are complete, and the city will purchase right of way for the new four lane connector route beginning this year. The city of Bowling Green expects money to fund the $10.9 construction project to come form the state’s budget.

William also noted during a meeting of the Purchase Area Development District that work will not begin to widen US 68/KY 80 through the Land Between the Lakes until a environmental impact statement is approved by the federal government.

Work to widen US 68/KY 80 beginning at the intersection with US 31W north of Bowling Green is being done on an accelerated basis and being paid for with discretionary funds. The $2.5 million project is likely a prelude to the construction of a new interchange with I-65 to serve the new Kentucky TriModal Transpark. Completion of the widening is scheduled for May 15.

Work is also planned to begin soon to reconstruct KY 101 near the Warren County-Edmonson County line.

The city of Bowling Green recently unveiled a 25 year plan for major thoroughfares through the city and surrounding county. Plans include widening most roads into the city and construction of new routes along the edges of the city including a new beltline highway.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Division of Planning has recently released the Final Report of the Pre-Design Scoping study for improvements to the Kentucky 69 approach to the Bob Cummings Bridge in Hawesville: more information

Additionally, materials involving a study of a proposed route between US 68 and Tollesboro in Fleming, Mason, and Lewis County: more information

Information regarding alternatives for a new connector route between Harlan and Hazard has also been posted: more information

October 26: Public meeting to discuss the replacement of the KY 2448 crossing of the North Fork of the Kentucky River. (6PM-8PM at the Hazard City Hall) [more information]

November 4: Public hearing to discuss the reconstruction of KY 52 in Garrard and Madison counties. (5PM-8PM at Paint Lick Elementary School) [more information]

November 9: Public meeting to discuss alternatives for a proposed route between the AA Highway at Tollesboro and US 68 at Fairview. (5PM-7PM in the Fleming RECC Meeting Room in Flemingsburg) [more information]

November 29, 30: Public meeting to discuss construction of the new Interstate 66 between Somerset and London. (Nov. 29 5PM-8PM at London Community Center and Nov. 30 5PM-8PM at The Center for Rural Development in Somereset) [more information]

In late September, the Simon Kenton Memorial Bridges was rededicated following a multiyear rehabilitation project. The bridge was originally dedicated Nov. 25, 1931. In addition to numerous local and state officials, two women who participated at the original dedication ceremony were on hand.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet recently presented three options for the so-called Heartland Parkway in central Kentucky between Columbia and Springfield.

Option 1 would construct a new interstate-like highway between the Cumberland Parkway and Blue Grass Parkway. The new highway would follow a corridor roughly two miles to the west of KY 55/US 68/KY 555.

With work to construct a new four lane section of KY 80 between Aurora and US 641 north of Murray nearly completed, focus has shifted to the next stage of the project: construction of another new four lane section between US 641 and Mayfield. The Graves/Calloway County is currently in the grade-and-drain phase of construction. Surfacing of the highway will not begin for sometime, and the road will not be open to traffic for several years.

Part of the preliminary work on a project to extend KY 880 from its current terminus at KY 185 to 5th Avenue and 6th Avenue will include an archeological survey of the area. Among other things, transportation cabinet archeologists will examine abandoned outhouses.

On April 1, the Simon Kenton suspension bridge over the Ohio River at Maysville closed to traffic. This is part of the second year of a two-year project to refurbish the bridge. The bridge will reopen later this year. Travelers should use the new William H. Harsha Bridge a few miles downstream from the Kenton Bridge.

Original construction of the bridge took only one year. It opened to traffic in 1931.

The Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge over the Ohio River at Maysville will close this summer for repair work. The bridge was closed last summer as part of the same repair project, but has been open over the past winter. The bridge will close April 1 and is planned to reopen August 31.

This summer will see an event known as “400 Miles of Antiques, Collectibles & Stuff” along nearly 400-miles of US 68 Kentucky. The event will be held June 3-6 and involve events along in 24 counties along US 68’s route.

Transportation officials have revealed three options for a proposed route between Columbia and Springfield. The proposed route has been called the Heartland Parkway and would pass through Adair, Taylor, Marion and Washington Counties.

One option would see the construction of the an interstate-type highway between the Louie B. Nunn Cumberland Parkway and the Blue Grass Parkway.

A second option would widen a route along KY 55, US 68, and KY 555 to four lanes.

A third option would simply add one mile of passing lanes to every three miles of road along KY 55, US 68, and KY 555 between the two parkways.

Current highway plans include no funding for the project other than this initial study.

Funding to continue the reconstruction of KY 80 is included in the new Six-Year Highway Plan. The project to widen KY 80 between Cadiz and Mayfield is broken up into three phases.

Phase 1 - Aurora to Murray - Construction on this phase of the project is nearly complete. It begins at the approach to US 68-KY 80 bridge over Kentucky Lake and continues westward to US 641 a few miles north of Murray. Construction started several years ago and should be complete this summer.

Phase 2 - Murray to Mayfield - Construction on this phase was recently begun. This $60 million will construct a new four lane highway between US 641 north of Murray to Mayfield. Construction is expected to last for a couple of years.

Phase 3 - Cadiz to Aurora - The Six-Year Plan includes $132 million to construct new four lane bridges over Kentucky Lake and Lake Berkeley. Construction on the bridges is scheduled to begin in 2006. Work on the widening project through the Land Between the Lakes has been delayed: the Tennessee Valley Authority gave initial approval for the project; however, ownership of the Land Between the Lakes has since been transferred to the United State Department of Agriculture forest service. Plans for the widening project are expected to be complete this summer, and construction is scheduled for completion in 2007.

The existing two-lane stretch of KY 80 between Aurora and Kentucky 58 east of Mayfield has already been renumbered as KY 402.

Sen. Mitch McConnell helped to secure $7.25 million in funding for transportation work related to the Bowling Green Transpark. Funded projects include a new I-65 interchange and improvements to US 68/KY 80.

The front page of Feb. 2's Glasgow Daily Times includes a photograph of a bridge near US 68-KY 80 that is being built as part of the Glasgow Outer Loop. The Daily Times reports that the project is running ahead of schedule.

The Herald-Leader reports that the special treatment received by the Paris Pike widening project is not feasible for all projects. The project had been stopped by court injunctions and only allowed to proceed after the Transportation Cabinet developed a plan designed to preserve the historic nature of the corridor. This raised the price of the project considerably, and is the main reason why not all projects will receive similar treatment. The widening project cost around $4.5 million per mile, nearly twice the cost of similar projects in the state.

The award winning $93 million widening project between Lexington and Paris was completed during the week of Nov. 30, 2003.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet presented several options for highways to connect the new Warren County Tri-Modal Transpark to I-65 at a public meeting on Oct. 9. Options include a new-freeway grade highway between I-65 and US 31W in northern Warren County and upgrading existing highways in the area.

The National Partnership for Highway Quality awarded its 2003 State Award to the team involved in the Paris Pike Reconstruction Project. Special care to preserve the character of the neighboring land was taken during the project to widen Paris Pike between Lexington and Paris.

The Transportation Cabinet is seeking consultants to design a 2.6-mile highway to connect I-65 to US 31W in northern Warren County as part of the Kentucky TriModal Transpark. The road could conceivably extended as part of the Bowling Green Beltline project or the I-66 project. The transportation cabinet would like to have construction start on the road within two years; however, they also expect a full environmental impact statement to be completed, which could take some time.

A project to re-align part of US 68 in Mercer County will involve a temporary closure of the road. A detour will be posted along KY 33 and KY 152 between Harrodsburg and Shaker Village. The landscaping for the project will involve the planting of 140 trees of 12 different native species. The road closed on Aug. 1 and will re-open by December 1.

Another section of US 68 in Boyle County was closed for culvert replacement on Aug. 6.

The Kroger grocery in Maysville has a replica of the Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge located near the produce section and photographs of the construction of the bridge near the entrance to the store. The Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge is a suspension bridge over the Ohio River. It was constructed in the 1930s and carries Business US 62 and Business US 68 into Ohio.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet has established a website covering the widening of Harrodsburg Road (US 68) in Fayette and Jessamine Counties at us68.ky.gov. The site includes construction schedules, maps, and photographs.

The Paris Pike Project was one 12 projects chosen for an Environmental Excellence Award. The widening of the road was originally proposed in 1966; however, fears that the beauty of the road would be destroyed by widening delayed the project for years. The project follows the contours of the land, preserved trees along the road, and used wooden fences instead of traditional metal guardrails.

The project was also honored by the Blue Grass Trust for Historic Preservation, Inc, a not-for-profit group that advocated historic preservation in central Kentucky.

H.B. Elkins posts in this Usenet message that he has learned from Jeff Moore at the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet that KY 80 will be routed along the new road currently under construction between Aurora and Mayfield. The current route of KY 80 between Aurora and KY 58 near Brewers has been renumbered as KY 402.

Over $16 million in funds left over from projects that came in under budget are being used to upgrade existing portions of US 68/KY 80 near Hopkinsville. In recent years, US 68/KY 80 has been widened to four lanes; however, in some sections the existing substandard roadway was used to carry traffic in one direction. This saved money since only two new lanes needed to be constructed instead of four. Now that there is some extra money available, the old roadway will be removed and rebuild to bring all four lanes to modern standards.

Here is some information from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet describing the historic and environmental concerns they took into consideration while designing a new route for US 68/KY 80 through the Land Between the Lakes.

A planned project to widen US 68/KY 80 to four lanes through the Land Between Lakes National Recreation Area is expected to cause a great deal of controversy. The $250 million project will replace the two 70-year old bridges of Lake Barkley and Kentucky Lake and construct a four lane highway on a 1000-foot right of way through LBL. The project is planned to begin in 2004, pending approval by the U.S. Forestry Service.

Proponents believe the new route would be safer than the current two lane road and increase tourism and commerce in the area; however, critics are concerned about environmental damage.

The Lexington Herald-Leader reports in this article (no longer online) that Harrodsburg Road (US 68) will be widened to four lanes beginning this summer. Work should be completed on the 3.4-mile section between Man o' War Boulevard and Brannon Road in late 2003 or early 2004.

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